The One without Home Goods

January 14, 2015

With my semester starting in February, I have this expansive chunk of time off to fill. Mostly my days consist of a trip to the gym, errands, plenty of Luna snuggles, reading, and dinner with Joe. What also fills in some of those gaps in time is the time (and mind) suck that is HGTV. I’m possessed by Fixer Upper. I asked Joe last night if we could move to Waco – the homes are just so dang cheap! His response was something along the lines of, ‘um, no, and you might consider watching something else’. Point taken.

This afternoon, after watching yet another inspiring complete home makeover, I set out on a trip to Home Goods. And about a mile down the road, I turned around and drove straight back home.

I had once again convinced myself that I needed another basket, throw pillow, vase, fill-in-the-blank, to feel comfortable and happy in my home. And that’s just not true. The trappings of home makeover shows seem harmless (how bad is buying cute stuff, really?), but the problem isn’t the Home Goods or the HGTV, it’s believing that a picture-perfect farmhouse would solve whatever problem or boredom I’m experiencing.

The truth is that I’m in the less than twenty percent of the world that lives on more than ten dollars a day. I have a warm home and a loving family. And that home is happy and full not because of any farmhouse-chic decor theme, but because it houses my loved ones. At the end of every day, what makes my home beautiful is the laughter and memories that take place within its walls.

So, while I might not abstain completely from Home Goods or my beloved home makeover shows, what I will do is a heart check the next time I’m feeling unsettled in my surroundings. Because rearranging furniture is free, and vacuuming probably wouldn’t hurt, either.